Top Ten Battle Music

As promised, here is a second top ten list of video game music, this time focusing on battle themes.

Honorable Mention: The boss battle music from Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga.

While I’m not sure this song was good enough to make the top ten, a friend of mine brought it up recently, and Superstar Saga is an awesome game that deserves at least an honorable mention. What I didn’t know back when I played the game was that the soundtrack was done by none other than Yoko Shimomura. No wonder it’s so good.

10- Awakening (Xenogears)

This is another instance from Xenogears where the story and music overcome crippling gameplay issues. Taken on its own, Xenogears’ final boss is a tedious, overly long battle that requires a series of miniboss fights in order to make Deus not impossible to defeat. However, in context of the story, the music perfectly captures what is happening; a battle against God.

9- Master of Shadow (Persona 3)

“Mass Destruction” is the song from P3 that most people remember (with good reason), but my personal favorite is this song, which plays during the Full Moon bosses that serve as story-centric encounters in Persona 3. This strange mix of rock and techno still somehow manages to be eerie and dramatic, as your party of high school students face against symbolic representations of the Major Arcanas.

8- Enter the Darkness (Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep)

If there is any one battle theme from Birth by Sleep (which already features one of the best soundtracks in the series’ history) that players will remember long after they finish playing, it is this one. The game’s recurring boss, antagonist Vanitas, would be a pretty forgettable villain on his own, if not for the sheer menace of his battle theme.

7- Saber’s Edge (Final Fantasy XIII)

Final Fantasy XIII had great music. Anyone who says otherwise is lying to themselves. Despite not featuring series great Nobuo Uematsu, XIII managed to deliver a fantastic score. This is another situation where the most ‘famous’ song from a game isn’t featured on my list, but rather a different song; in this case, the dramatic orchestral boss theme ‘Saber’s Edge’ in place of ‘Blinded by Light’.

6- The Final Battle (Chrono Trigger)

Surprisingly, something related to Chrono Trigger isn’t at the top of the list! As much as I love the game, I really couldn’t justify putting this song higher when stacked against all the other wonderful songs on this list. Still, Chrono Trigger’s final battle against Lavos is one of the most epic confrontations in gaming history. Lavos, the planet-killing parasite, is revealed to have been directly responsible for evolution on our planet, including the growth of the human race. It’s a battle across time with what is essentially God.

5- J-E-N-O-V-A (Final Fantasy VII)

One could make a convincing argument that the alien monstrosity known as Jenova is the real villain of Final Fantasy VII. After all, Sephiroth’s physical body was at the Northern Crater for the entirety of the game; his consciousness merely manifested itself through Jenova’s cells. If you want to be technical about it, Jenova was the one who actually killed Aeri… but I’m getting ahead of myself. Jenova’s battle theme is pretty trippy, but it suits the alien nature of this menace.

4- Darkness of the Unknown (Kingdom Hearts II)

Ah, Kingdom Hearts II. Nobody seems to agree on whether or not you’re better than your predecessor. Regardless, this game’s three stage final boss fight is awesome, but what makes it even better is the ties to Birth by Sleep. ‘Darkness of the Unknown’ shares a name with ‘Fate of the Unknown’, referring to the three unsung heroes from Birth by Sleep. And, if you listen closely, the leitmotif central to ‘Darkness’ is, in fact, Terra’s theme. Realizing who/what Terra is makes the final battle of Kingdom Hearts II that much more epic.

3- The Battle for Freedom (Final Fantasy XII)

This is turning into the Final Fantasy/Kingdom Hearts list, isn’t it? It’s not my fault, they have awesome music!

…really, there isn’t much to say about this one. The Battle for Freedom has a long intro, followed by one of the most epic final boss songs in the series’ history. Final Fantasy XII grounded its story in the believable plight of a small nation, and their bid for freedom manages to provide surprisingly high stakes compared to the usual ‘save the universe’ fare the series offers.

2- An Earnest Desire of Grey (Radiant Historia)

Radiant Historia features some of Yoko Shimomura’s best work, but the final boss theme of the game is perfect. It takes some context to fully appreciate, but hearing this song cemented Radiant Historia as one of my favorite games, as well as one of the best DS games ever made.

1- The Other Promise (Kingdom Hearts II: Final Mix)

Technically, I’m cheating here (including two songs from what is pretty much the same game), but come on; there’s no way I can’t include this. One of the most heartbreaking boss themes I’ve ever heard, as Sora and Roxas battle for control. Absolutely beautiful.